Dad’s Mayo Biscuits

My dad always made these biscuits. I think they were his favorite to make. They are tender, fluffy, and so good. The mayo just does something to these biscuits to make them even better. You don’t taste the mayo at all. I promise you that you will not taste the mayo, but it sure does make a fluffy biscuit. It has a slightly sweet taste, but without adding any sugar to the dough. It is magical. They go with any dinner menu any time of year. They are even delectable with gravy for breakfast. I highly recommend you give them a try the next time you make biscuits.

Let’s get started.

INGREDIENTS:

2 C. All-purpose flour
1 tbsp. Baking powder
1/4 Tsp. baking soda
1/2 Tsp. Kosher salt ( or 1/4 tsp fine salt)
1/4 C. Lard, Butter, or Crisco ( See note)
3 Tbsp. Mayo
3/4 to 1 C. Buttermilk

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat the oven to 425* and grease a pan with either lard, crisco, or butter. Set to the side.
2. In a bowl, whisk together ( I prefer to sift) the Flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
3. Add the lard and work the lard into the flour until crumbly. There should be small and medium-sized chunks of lard bits in the flour.
4. Add 3/4 Cup of the buttermilk and begin to mix together. When the dough starts to come together, add the mayo and continue to mix the dough together. If you need to add more buttermilk, you can. Add a little at a time and mix until there is no more flour on the bottom of the bowl. A few bits of flour are fine. They will get folded into the dough later.
5. Once the dough has come together, flour your work surface and turn the dough out onto the floured surface. Gently pat out a bit and fold over onto itself. Do this about 2 to 3 more times. On the last time, pat out the dough to about 1 to 1 1/2 inches thick. Dip your biscuit cutter into a bit of flour and cut out your biscuits. Cut straight down and pull straight up. Do not twist the cutter. Place the cut biscuits into a greased or buttered pan. They can touch, or they don’t have to touch. This is personal preference. Re-pat out the dough and continue to cut out the biscuits until there is no more dough to cut. You can shape the leftover dough into a biscuit shape and add it to the pan too.
6. Now, at this point you can brush the tops of the biscuits with either buttermilk, milk, cream, lard, or butter. Whatever you feel will work. Bake the biscuits for 20 minutes. Remove from heat. If the biscuits are not as brown as you may like, you can put them under the broiler for 2 to 3 minutes. Be sure to keep an eye on them, as they will burn very quickly.
7. Remove the biscuits from the pan and place them in a biscuit bowl lined with a tea towel to keep them warm.
8. Serve warm and as desired.

NOTES:

• If you want to use lard or crisco, I prefer it to be room temp. You can put it in the freezer for a few minutes if you want it cold.
• If you prefer butter, I would recommend it to be cold or frozen. You can then cube it or grate it into the flour.
• Cream and butter brown better in the oven compared to milk or buttermilk because of the fats. You can use either one. I use whatever I feel like using. Most days it is cream or butter. All work well.